Thoughts on business, entrepreneurship, and life from a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and writer.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

The 7 Steps of Storytelling for Entrepreneurs

As a proud graduate of Stanford's d.School, I'm privileged to be part of the alumni mailing list, which includes a lot of the world's smartest, most creative people.

We've had a number of interesting discussions recently, ranging from 3D printing to the best source of "tiny balls" (don't ask). One of the most interesting has been the discussion about storytelling. One of my fellow alums reminded us of the following formula for an instant story:

Once upon a time....

And every day ....

Until one day ....

And because of that ....

And because of that ....

Until Finally ....

Ever since that day ....

And the moral is....

It struck me that this story template is extremely useful for entrepreneurs. It helps structure the narrative of why your company matters.

Once upon a time....Your market

And every day....The environment

Until one day....The problem

And because of that....Your solution

Until Finally....Your impact

Ever since that day....Your customers

And the moral is....Your secret sauce

This deep narrative structure helps turn a dry recitation of facts into a compelling story, once which can help you sell to customers and investors. Try it out, and let me know how it works for you!